RNC closes loop on Palin clothes

Closing a loop on the campaign finance side of the Sarah Palin clothes saga, the Republican National Committee late last month filed an amended report detailing exactly which disbursements were clothing purchases for the Republican vice presidential candidate and her family.

That new report brings the total Palin clothing costs paid by the RNC down to about $173,000 and also makes it easier to spot clothing purchases that had previously gone undetected.

For instance, a $192 payment to the Philadelphia Flyers pro shop previously described as “campaign accessories” was recategorized as “candidate clothing,” possibly for either the Flyers hockey jersey Palin reportedly received with her name and the No. 1 on the back before dropping a ceremonial puck or the one that her younger daughter, Piper, wore at the game.

Similarly, a $289 payment to high-end shoemaker Stuart Weitzman, which had been described as “retail” and “accessories,” became “candidate clothing.”

The report also details a number of clothing payments to retailers not known for their sartorial selection, including $49 to a UPS Store near running mate John McCain’s Arizona ranch; $144 to CVS stores in Ohio, Florida and Wisconsin; and $426 to various Walgreens stores.

The RNC did not respond to requests for comment about the amended report or the fate of the clothes, which were to have been donated to charity.

The amended report came at the behest of the Federal Election Commission, which last month ordered the committee to “include a brief statement or description of why the [accessory] expenditures were made” on behalf of the McCain-Palin campaign.